On Sept. 12, the Arkansas State Medical Board enacted an emergency license suspension and launched an investigation into Sudesh Banaji, MD, reported the Arkansas Advocate Sept. 12.
Dr. Banaji was arrested Aug. 26 on six felony counts of second-degree sexual assault and one felony count of rape. The arrest took place approximately one year after Arkansas State Police began investigating allegations of inappropriate sexual contact with female patients during exams at Dr. Banaji's clinic in Forrest City, Ark.
Court documents in a lawsuit filed Sept. 6 detail the criminal charges against Dr. Banaji, which include four female patients alleging that he touched them inappropriately during exams within the last two years. All of them stated the physician had made them uncomfortable during breast exams, and one patient said she experienced an "extremely painful" vaginal exam that occurred "without her consent."
Three other people who worked with Banaji mentioned concerns about the physician participating in inappropriate behavior with patients, and one said that Dr. Banaji had touched her inappropriately as well.